Anyone ever have hives

This is my fifth day of having hives. I have them on both arms and its starting on my chest. I've never had this before but I think it may be food related. I'm going to eliminate the protein drinks and see if that makes a difference. Has anyone experienced this before? Not sure what to do.

You might want to, each time there is a reaction, write down the ingredients in what was eaten. It usually doesn't take long to narrow it down to the trigger. If you look at the drink ingredients and see something you don't normally consume, you can probably narrow it down very quickly.
Keep your benadryl handy!
Good luck! Keep us posted.

FYI: A severe allergic reaction can actually cause your throat to close up to the point you can't breathe. If you ever notice difficulty breathing when you have hives, get to the ER immediately! Like yaelbelle says, keep your benadryl handy.

Yes, I had a condition called CIU which is basically constant hives for no known reason. Had them for 8 months and tested negative for everything. Could stop them with a course of prednisone, but as soon as tapered off the pred, they were back. Then 8 months into this horror the same course of pred I'd go on just to get some relief knocked them down and stayed down.

Doctors could not find why they started or why they stopped, but interestingly enough the horror of that 8 months really helped motivate me later to adopt a healthier lifestyle. The road I was going down would have lead to chronic health issues such as high BP, cholesterol, or even diabetes and I was determined NOT to have to live with a condition I could prevent.

I definitely think its something with the diet that causes it. I had hives on my hands the first week and it slowly went away but now I'm noticing hives on the back of my neck as well. I also have itchy skin all over. Weird.

FYI: A severe allergic reaction can actually cause your throat to close up to the point you can't breathe. If you ever notice difficulty breathing when you have hives, get to the ER immediately! Like yaelbelle says, keep your benadryl handy.

If you are getting hives/rash. be careful and monitor it closely trying to find the cause as soon as you can.

The below is specifically regarding a hive/rash reaction where you begin to have difficulty breathing and feel your throat is tightening/swelling shut. greeniris is 100% correct. This is called an anaphylactic recaction and can be extremely life threatening/fatal. It will progress quickly and may seem to happen out of the blue. For example, a person with a bee sting, latex or peanut butter allergy may be ok on their ninth hive/rash reaction, but on their tenth reaction they could go into anaphylactic shock - needing immediate medical attention. If this happens to you - call 911 - take this very seriously and don't hesitate (don't wait for the benadryl to start working?. Also, don't drive yourself to the ER. Jen

Oh! JenRem is absolutely right. It reminded me of something our allergist told me. In case we do not have our Epi-Pens handy, but do have Benadryl handy, (say visiting someone and the Epi is in the car, I guess. ) He told me it is very difficult to take "too much" Benadryl (please DO NOT test this out unless necessary)and to give my son 4 times the adult dose if he has a reaction. One of my son's has a very severe shellfish allergy and has to take 2 Epi's if exposed. I keep them with me. But I want to share that in case anyone begins to feel mouth, throat symptoms. We keep the liquid on hand. If you havecapsules, bite them. Worst case, if you weren't allergic,you might sleep well.

I had a severe allergic reaction where my tongue swelled 911 was called.EMTs gave me Benadryl at my house, gave me Benadryl in the ambulance on the way to the hospital and more Benadryl.when I got to the hospital.I get that same severe reaction once in awhile but now I recognize when it is starting and two Benadryl stop it. I have been tested by an specialist in allergies and the cause has not been found, yet. Best advice from Doctors take Benadryl right away. I do have an Epi Pen but I rely on Benadryl. It is possible to be allergic to thousnands of things and is hard to find the cause.If you ever have a severe reaction call 911.

Yes I got them about after two weeks, went to Dr. and had to stop so much vinegar to much acid at once. Also she gave me Zyrtec and Prevacid take togather and it will stop the itching and swelling worked great and never had them again.

Last allergy thought: The way we discovered my son was allergic to shellfish was that it touched his skin. -And we still ended up with an emergency. So, you can always put a dab of something on your arm and if you don't respond with some type irritation, at least possibly assume the allergy is not severe. Our allergist said this was actually an old fashioned way of checking. I don't. But... It could maybe help narrow down if one specific food is bothering you.

Well I don't think it is the protein drink because I haven't had one for 2 days. The hives are looking better but the itch is worse. I've eliminated everything I can think of. If it doesn't get better today I'm going to go to the doctor tomorrow. Thanks for the tips on Benadryl. I will have to try the Zyrtec and Prevacid today.

I've had hives three times head to toe..and have had to take steroids to get rid of them...

I also got them when I began IP. I called my coach and we determined what was causing them and I went in and traded all my food for two that worked fine for me (the chocolate drink and double chocolate bar).

From that point on I was fine.

If you don't have a coach look at your protein foods (shakes etc) to see what they have in common that could be causing your hives. Check for the protein they are made up (soy, whey etc.).